


30 Days of BenKaru

by gayspacepilots



Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Angst, Domestic Fluff, Family Fluff, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Crack, Fluff and Humor, Homophobia, M/M, Mild Language, Swearing, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, chapter 16 has some mild homophobia but the rest of the chapters are super sweet and fluffy, mild homophobia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-02
Updated: 2016-09-30
Packaged: 2018-08-12 15:24:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 30
Words: 13,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7939654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gayspacepilots/pseuds/gayspacepilots
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is for <a href="http://empresshoshisato.tumblr.com">empresshoshisato's</a> 30 Day BenKaru challenge, which can be found <a href="http://empresshoshisato.tumblr.com/post/148376479561/benkaru-30-day-challenge-this-is-a-30-day">here</a>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Date Night

**Author's Note:**

> This is one of the first few tumblr prompts that I have finished for Ben and Hikaru. I am working my way through the other prompts that I asked people permission for. I promise I'm working on them and they will be uploaded as soon as I, and my editor, deem them worthy. 
> 
> Also, a lot of my chapters are inspired by [sonoberg](http://sonoberg.tumblr.com/), Sono runs a wonderful blog and posts a lot of beautiful art. With Sono's permission, I would love to write more stories based on their art. Please check out Sono's blog, I love their blog and I assure you it's worth looking through their art. (Spoilers, it's got a lot of gay space husbands and their adorable daughter!)

“Okay, so the bottles are here and the toys are over there and the extra-”

“Ben!” Bones interjected, startling the man out of his rant, “I’ve got it, I had a daughter that I cared for before my divorce, I can handle it.” He finished, patting the man on the shoulder.

“You sure?” Ben asked, looking concerned.

“Don’t worry about it,” He answered, “Now you and Hikaru get outta here! You’re ruining my precious time with my goddaughter.”

Ben smiled as Bones leaned over the crib and picked up a very young, sleeping Demora.

“Alright Ben, let’s go!” Hikaru spoke when he emerged from the bathroom wearing a blue suit, a white shirt and black tie, while Ben wore a collared black shirt with a grey vest and a black tie.

They whispered their goodbyes to Demora, careful not to wake their sleeping daughter.

 

“You know, we’re a little overdressed to be getting our reunion dinner out of an Andorian food truck. While we sit in the park and watch a meteor shower that could potentially kill us.” Ben chuckled, taking a bite of his tuber root.

“Yeah, but it just makes it more interesting,” Hikaru replied, spooning his cabbage soup into his mouth.

They talked for half an hour before they finished their meals and saw the first meteor fly by Yorktown.

“WHOA!” Hikaru shouted, his eyes glued to the space rocks whipping past the starbase.

“Look at how close that one is!” Ben gawked, pointing at a large meteor, just outside of Yorktown’s barrier.

“Did you see that?” Hikaru shouted, “That one just broke in half!”

“Look how huge that one is!”

“Did you see how fast that one was?”

 

They had been watching the meteors for 20 minutes until Ben spoke hesitantly, “Uh...that one looks like it’s about to hit the barrier.” Hikaru looked over to where Ben was pointing at meteor that was headed directly towards Yorktown. But before Hikaru could say anything, Yorktown’s defenses shot at the incoming asteroid until it exploded into millions of small space rocks.

Both men were silent and stunned, it took them several minutes to get their thoughts together. “Okay, now that was incredible!” Ben admitted.

Hikaru was lost for words, “Yeah,” He sighed.

“I can see why you like space so much,” Ben hummed, leaning over to give his husband a kiss.

 

“So what did you think?” Hikaru asked Ben, as they walked back to their apartment, their hands linked and Hikaru’s head on Ben’s shoulder.

“It was beautiful and absolutly stunning, I didn’t know that they would be that close to the barrier. I thought they’d be farther out.” Ben marvelled.

Hikaru squeezed Ben’s hand as he answered, “I told you that you’d love it out here.”

Ben sighed, “Yeah, I do, I do love it out here...but do you know what I love more?” Hikaru turned to him, “What do you love more?” He asked, his eyebrows furrowed.

 

“You,” Ben answered, leaning over to kiss Hikaru’s nose.

Hikaru laughed warmly, “I love you too!”


	2. Fluffy Kisses

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was inspired by [sonoberg's](http://sonoberg.tumblr.com) beautiful art that can be found [here](http://sonoberg.tumblr.com/post/149115624430/ben-and-hikaru-i-love-them-and-i-love-drawing) and [here](http://sonoberg.tumblr.com/post/149372575915/hikaru-and-ben).
> 
> Sono is super sweet and please go check out Sono's blog. The art is incredible and sweet, if you love Hikaru, Ben and Demora, then you will love this blog.

“Have I ever told you how much I love your nose?” Hikaru asked, sitting in Ben’s lap, with his legs wrapped around Ben’s back. Their chests were pressed together and their tips of their noses were touching.

“My nose?” Ben asked, confused.

“Yeah, your nose, right here!” Hikaru giggled as he pulled away to bop Ben’s nose. 

“Are you drunk?” Ben laughed, leaving a trail of kisses from his collarbone, up his neck, to the underside of his jaw.

“In love,” Hikaru answered softly, reaching for Ben’s hands. He placed a kiss on every finger, every knuckle; he kissed his palms and the back of his hands more times than either of them could count. Ben laughed at every kiss, the tickle it made against his skin and the feeling of Hikaru lips dancing across his hands.

 

When Hikaru stopped, Ben pulled Hikaru to his feet and rested his hands on Hikaru’s waist. Hikaru wrapped his arms around Ben’s neck as Ben leaned down to kiss the Hikaru’s lips. It wasn’t anything super intimate, just something soft; a reminder of the kisses they shared before Hikaru left, the kisses they couldn’t have and the air kisses they sent each other through video calls. When they broke the kiss, Ben looked down at Hikaru and murmured, “I missed you, I missed this.”

Hikaru smiled sadly, “I missed you too,” He echoed, leaning up on the tips of his toes to kiss Ben again.


	3. With Their Daughter

“Aaaahh Chooo,” Demora sneezed into her sleeve.

“Oh, sweetie,” Ben cooed, tucking her blankets up to her chin and holding a tissue for her to blow her nose into. Demora had been stuck in bed and sick with a cold for several days now. Ben and Hikaru were constantly at her sides, trying to make her feel better.

Demora gave several rough sounding coughs, “I don’t feel very good.” She spoke, struggling with her words.

Hikaru, who was sitting on the bed next to her, let out a, “I’m sorry, Dem.” He tucked her hair behind her ears and pulled the longer strands behind her shoulders. “You’ll feel better in a couple of days,” He replied softly.

“‘m hungry,” She mumbled.

“I’ll go make you something,” Ben whispered, standing up from the bed and walking out of Demora’s room. Demora shifted in her bed, so that she was facing Hikaru. She made grabby hands at him before croaking out, “Juice.” Hikaru turned around and grabbed the cup that was sitting on the table next to the girl’s bed. He helped her sit up, before handing her the cup. She took several sips before weakly handing back the cup and collapsing onto the bed.

Hikaru rubbed her back lightly until Ben returned with a bowl of chicken noodle soup. He climbed onto the bed and sat with them, while Hikaru propped another pillow under Demora’s back; so she could lie down without choking on her soup. Ben and Hikaru took turns feeding Demora spoonfuls of soup, mumbling corny phrases that made Demora laugh. “Here comes the starship,” Ben singsung, swishing his spoon around dramatically before offering it to Demora. She giggled, bouncing her legs excitedly, as she accepted the soup spoon.

Hikaru’s next phrase of, “Requesting access to airlock 41A-67, I’ve got a shuttle full of cold remedies for one Miss Demora Sulu.” Made her laugh so hard, she spat out the water she was drinking and completely soaked Ben, who was in the splash zone. Ben looked ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous; Hikaru and Dem took one look at him before they both burst out laughing. They laughed until their lungs burned and tears were streaming down their faces. Ben, despite his soaked clothes, couldn’t help but smile back at them.

He was extremely happy to see Demora laughing again.


	4. How They Met

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For this challenge, I wanted them to meet in a different way other then through botany or cafe AUs. Don’t get me wrong, I love the idea of Hikaru and Ben meeting through botany, flower shop or a coffee shop, but I wanted to write something completely different for this one.
> 
> I hope you like it!

Hikaru was a Californian inside and out. He loved living in San Francisco almost as much as he loved space and Starfleet. One of the things that was great about being Californian, was that he had mastered surfing since he was 13.

Once he got into the Academy, he never had enough free time on his hands to run down to the beach for an hour or two just to surf. But when summer finally arrived, he was ecstatic. He could finally have some time to spend in the water. He ran down to the beach with his board under his arm. He caught a few decent waves, one really good one and several really crappy ones. He decided to take a break on the beach before heading back out for round two.

 

He wasn’t on the beach for 5 minutes before he heard a voice beside him. “Um, excuse me?” A timid, rich voice spoke. Hikaru looked up and he saw a man who had to be the most gorgeous person he’d ever seen before.

“I, uh...noticed your board and I couldn’t help but wonder if you surf.” The beautiful man asked, looking sheepish.

“Uh, yeah, I do.” Hikaru barely answered.

“Would you like to join me? I was just about to catch some waves.” The man spoke awkwardly. Hikaru looked at him quizzically, but replied, “Yeah, sure. Why not.”

“I’m Ben,” The man spoke, offering Hikaru a hand.

“Hikaru,” He answered, taking Ben’s hand.

 

The two headed out into the water, just as a huge wave rolled out in front of them. “Oh yeah, now that’s what I’m talking about!” Hikaru shouted. Hikaru was so lost in riding the wave, he didn’t notice that Ben didn’t follow him. When Hikaru got off the wave, he scanned the water, but Ben was nowhere to be found. “Oh no,” Hikaru thought when Ben’s board popped up to the surface.

Hikaru dove down into the water and saw Ben floating down to the sand. Hikaru pulled Ben to the surface and hauled him onto his surfboard.

“You can’t swim?” Hikaru asked, treading water next to Ben, who was sputtering water out of his mouth.

“I can swim, I just can’t surf,” Ben explained, “I was hoping to watch from someone and try out a few small waves. I never intended to try something that big right away.” Ben was almost hysterical. Hikaru felt sympathetic towards him, for some unexplainable reason, he felt attached to this man that he only recently met.  

“I know this is a long shot,” Ben chuckled, “But...uh, is there anyway you could teach me? I’ve always wanted to learn, but I just never got around to it and I…” He trailed off.

“Why didn’t you just ask me at the start?” Hikaru laughed lightly.

Ben shrugged, “I was embarrassed, I didn't know how you'd react to teaching a complete stranger surfing.”

Hikaru smiled, “I’d be happy to teach you, but you’re buying me dinner after this. Deal?”

“Are you asking me on a date?” Ben asked.

“Yeah, I want to meet my surfer boy.”

Ben laughed, “I’m a Starfleet boy for starters.”

“Really?” Hikaru asked, beaming, “It looks like we’ve got something else in common.”

 

Later on, while Hikaru was walking Ben through some basics of surfing, Ben asked, “Do you like plants?” Hikaru had never fallen in love with someone quicker than this. And when Hikaru replied, with a, “I’m a Botanist,” Ben had fallen for him just as quickly.


	5. Cuddling

“Hikaru stop kicking me!” Ben complained from the other side of the bed.

“But I can’t get comfy...” Hikaru complained, shifting from his left side to his right and back again. Ben sighed, he’d never get any sleep if this continued.

“Just get over here and stop being ridiculous.” Ben yawned, opening his arms. Hikaru shuffled over and leaned into his husband’s embrace. Ben turned Hikaru in his arms, so that they were spooning; Hikaru being the small spoon and Ben the large spoon. Ben felt Hikaru relax in his arms as he pressed his body against his own.

“I’m sorry I can never fall asleep,” Hikaru whispered.

“I’m sorry I love cuddling so much,” Ben joked quietly.

Hikaru giggled softly, “I love you, Ben.”

Ben placed a line of kisses up Hikaru’s neck, “I love you too, Hikaru.”


	6. Exploring Space

Ben always loved the beauty of space but was never super keen on the idea of deep, uncharted space. Which is why he was scared when Hikaru suggest the two of them and their newborn daughter move to Yorktown, a space station on the edge of deep space. But eventually Hikaru managed to convince Ben to move with Demora to Yorktown.

And now that he was here, Ben was so thankful that he had agreed. From his shuttle window, he could see the numerous stars and the endless galaxies in the distance. It was breathtaking.

“It’s beautiful,” Ben spoke to Hikaru, through their PADDs.

“I knew you’d love it.” Hikaru replied, “We’ll be so much closer than we were before.”

“It will be a great place for Dem to grow up.” Ben added, looking down at their sleeping child.

  
“Welcome home.”


	7. Free Day: Movie Night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm uncomfortable writing nsfw, so instead I did movie night. This is based off of another one of [Sono's](http://sonoberg.tumblr.com) art pieces. It can be found [here](http://sonoberg.tumblr.com/post/149094591900/doodle-watching-a-movie). Check it out, it's really sweet!

Hikaru loved movie night, it gave him extra time to spend with Ben after they put Demora to bed. Occasionally she would wake up and join them, if Hikaru and Ben deemed the movie appropriate for their 4 year old daughter to watch. If it wasn’t, they’d stop the film and put her back to bed. They could even watch movies together when Hikaru was on the Enterprise, through video calls on their PADDs.

Movie night became a tradition to the two of them; every Wednesday, they’d choose a movie or two to watch together. Sometimes it would be a terrible sci-fi film that they would roll their eyes at and mock, other times it was a cliche rom-com that would have them cuddling on their bed while exchanging soft kisses.

This time it was a classic, The Three Musketeers; an old movie Hikaru saw when he was 8 and had just got into his school’s fencing club.

“What do you mean you’ve never seen The Three Musketeers?” Hikaru huffed, mildly annoyed as he placed his hands on his hips.

“It’s old Hikaru,” Ben complained.

“It’s a classic,” Hikaru defended, “It’s got action and adventure, betrayal, treason.” Hikaru approached his husband and placed his hands on Ben’s waist, “It’s got lots of fencing,” Hikaru singsung.

Ben blushed, he loved watching fencing; the way they would move around so fluidly and with ease amazed him. “Alright, we’ll watch your stupid fencing movie,” Ben replied softly.

  


They were halfway through the movie; Ben was leaning against the arm of the couch and Hikaru’s legs were curled up as he cuddled Ben’s side. Hikaru was hyper-focused on the movie, pointing out all the little bits and details to Ben.

“Ooo, ooo, ooo!” Hikaru shrieked, drawing a chuckle out of Ben. He loved seeing his husband get emotional and passionate over the things he loves, the things he would defend with his life. The obvious being their little family, along with the less obvious, the 20th classic, The Three Musketeers.

 

“This is when D’Artagnan gets knighted by the King and officially becomes a musketeer.” Hikaru commented as the movie came to a close.

Ben pulled his enthusiastic partner close to him, kissing the top of his head. Words couldn’t express Ben’s love towards the swordsman, so he held him close as he whispered, “All for one,” Into Hikaru’s ear. Hikaru looked up at the man and beamed.

“And one for all,” Hikaru finished, leaning up to give Ben a kiss.


	8. Flower Shop AU

Hikaru wasn’t a huge fan of cut flowers. He knew he was being biased because he was a botanist and he struggled to see the point in letting flowers die for some dumb event or person. Anyways, it didn’t matter; he was only getting flowers because his sister Yuki, wanted some for her girlfriend and she was too busy to get them herself.

It was supposed to be a quick thing, in and out, simple as that. As he entered the store, there was no one inside. “Hmm, well that’s odd,” He thought as he approached the counter. He saw a small bell beside a pot of flowers on the counter. He rang it twice and a voice yelled, “Coming!” From the back room.

 

A man emerged holding a vase of assorted lilies, “Sorry about that,” He chuckled, “How can I help you.” Hikaru was awe-struck, the man in front of him was stunning, absolutely stunning. He found himself lost for words as he lost himself in the man’s features. He scanned over his name tag, “Ben.”

“Ben, Ben and Hikaru, Hikaru and Ben, Hikaru and Ben Sulu, Mr. and Mr. Sulu.” Hikaru thought to himself. Hikaru had forgotten why he walked into this store in the first place. He reached over and grabbed a rose out of a nearby vase. He handed it to Ben with a, “For you.” Hikaru almost regretted what he did, but when he saw the smile and blush on Ben’s face, he couldn’t help but feel giddy.

 

And that’s when Hikaru saw the appeal and beauty in flower bouquets.


	9. Holding Hands

Ben loved Hikaru’s hands, how they felt against his skin, either roaming aimlessly across his back and sides while they lay in bed together, or how his hands perfectly fit against his jaw whenever he leaned up to kiss him. Ben loved it all. But, what he loved the most was the feeling of Hikaru’s hand against his own. The calluses lining Hikaru’s hand from all the fencing he did; the roughness of his fingers but the softness of his palm against Ben’s own soft hands.

Ben loved Hikaru’s hands, he told him that everyday when he’d kiss them, when he’d kiss each finger, both of his palms and the backs of his hands. He loved them and he loved Hikaru. But Ben also loved the feeling of Demora’s hand in his own; when the three of them would walk along Yorktown’s sidewalks and dirt paths on other planets. He would never forget Demora’s laugh on Vinci IV, as she walked in between him and Hikaru, holding both of their hands.

 

_Hikaru was granted shore leave on a planet not too far from Yorktown. So Ben had brought Demora from Yorktown to visit her other father. The girl was smiling from ear to ear, giggling as she swung herself from her parents hands. The family looked ridiculous; especially Demora in her ski pants, bright red boots, marshmallow-esque coat and multicoloured scarf. The snow was falling down in large wet clumps, landing on her knit hat and her outstretched tongue._

_“Oooo!” She exclaimed, when a snowflake landed on her tongue, “I got one!”_

_Hikaru and Ben laughed from underneath their winter clothes. “Well aren’t you lucky then?” Hikaru asked, giving her hand a squeeze, as Ben pulled her scarf back over her nose._

_“Papa! Daddy!” She shouted, muffled by her large scarf. “Let’s build a snowalien!” Before the two men could say anything, the girl shot off, like a rocket and started rolling snow into a large ball._

_The two men shared a look before running off to join their daughter._

 

Ben looked over to his sleeping husband who was curled against him, he smiled and gave his hand a squeeze before falling asleep next to him.


	10. Marriage

Hikaru would never forget the day he married Ben. It was a warm summer day, in San Francisco where both of them grew up. They had their ceremony in the middle of a small park, just off the academy grounds. Hikaru argued that they keep the wedding simple and only invite their friends and immediate family, but when Ben insisted that they should have a big, breathtaking wedding, he couldn’t refuse. They asked Kirk if he would officiate and he happily accepted. 

 

Hikaru would always remember Ben’s vows; the vows that brought tear to his eyes but made him laugh so hard his lungs hurt. Hikaru was worried his vows would be subpar in comparison to Ben’s vows.  


However, when his vows poured out of his mouth, he saw the tears in Ben’s eyes and knew his vows were just as good as Ben’s. When they gave each other their rings and Kirk had declared them spouses for life, Hikaru was shocked when Ben had grabbed his waist and dipped him. They shared a long kiss, relishing in the feeling of married life. The cheers of their coworkers, friends and family were white noise to them, all they were focused on was each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Number 28, Being Drunk, will be a sequel to this little one shot.


	11. Swapped Clothing

It all started as accident, well not really an accident, but it made Ben feel better if he said it was an accident. Hikaru had left his command uniform on their dresser when Jim had called him to hang out for the day. Ben never would have done it if Demora was home, he would have been completely embarrassed to see his little girl see him wearing Hikaru’s starfleet uniform.

 

He spent about 20 minutes staring at the uniform and 45 minutes telling himself how terrible an idea this was.  

“You’ll never fit it.”

“You’re too bulky for that.”

“You’ll destroy the shirt.”

“What if something happens to it.”

“What if you try it and you get stuck?”

However, his curiosity got the best of him and he pulled off his own shirt and grabbed Hikaru’s uniform. He unzipped the zipper on the top of the uniform before pulling it up and over his head. He awkwardly tugged at the ends of his sleeves before doing up the zipper at the back of the uniform.

 

He barely had enough time to walk over to the hallway mirror and look at the snug uniform he was wearing before he heard the door open. Ben froze, his feet frozen to the floor. He watched helplessly as the door opened and Hikaru stepped inside.

Hikaru couldn’t stop staring at the uniform, his uniform that was forming to his husband’s body. Hikaru gulped before approaching the man.

“Hi-karu, I-I’m sorry,” Ben stuttered quickly, “I-I d-didn’t mean t-to. I-” Hikaru cut him off with a kiss before pushing him into their bedroom.

“Don’t you even think about taking that off!” Hikaru declared, shoving him onto the bed.

  


“Wow,” Ben breathed, still wearing Hikaru’s uniform shirt, “I had no idea you’d like that so much.”

Hikaru hummed as he snuggled up to Ben’s side, completely naked. “I can’t help that my husband is extremely attractive and even more so when he’s wearing my uniform.”

  
From that point on, Ben always made it a habit to “accidently” wear Hikaru’s uniform when he was home and he always seemed to have one whenever Hikaru would return to space. For no reason whatsoever, of course.


	12. Coffee Shop AU

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ve seen a lot of coffee shop AUs where Ben is the barista and Hikaru is the customer. So, I wanted to reverse that and make Hikaru the barista and Ben is social worker at a local adoption agency.

Hikaru hated his job, he really did. He couldn’t stand the obnoxious, rude customers; or the people that would order complicated orders, just so that they could complain that their drinks weren’t what they ordered. He would have submitted his one-week notice, if his boss wasn’t on vacation for 2 months

Hikaru had just unlocked the cafe when a very tired, tall man stumbled through the door. Hikaru looked up at the man and his jaw almost hit the floor. “Oh shit...” He murmured to himself. “I have to be staring at the most stunning and beautiful man ever.” He felt inclined to rest his arms on the counter and stare at the man for hours, but he was working and that would be extremely inappropriate. The man was much taller than Hikaru and broader too. Hikaru felt entranced by the man, watching as the sunlight danced off of his bronze skin.  
The man stopped in front of the counter and mumbled, “Can I get a large black coffee and a large green tea, please?” This shook Hikaru out of his thoughts and he stuttered out a, “A-any sugar or m-milk or-”  
“No thank you,” The man yawned.  
Hikaru grabbed two cups and asked, “And can I get your name?”  
“Ben,” He answered.

Despite Ben’s relatively simple order, Hikaru couldn’t focus on making Ben’s drinks; his eyes always trailing over to him. He was scowling at his phone, “He even looks cute when he’s upset,” Hikaru thought quietly. “So,” Hikaru spoke aloud, “What do you do for a living?”  
Ben chuckled, “Why are you asking?”  
“I’m just trying to make small talk,” Hikaru blushed, turning back to the drinks.  
“I’m a social worker at Tiny Treasures Adoption Agency,” Ben answered, looking up from his PADD.  
“Really?” Hikaru asked, “So you like children then?”  
“Yeah,” Ben sighed, “You get really attached to them and it’s heartwarming when you see them get adopted.”  
“That’s so sweet,” Hikaru answered, handing Ben his drinks. Ben was just about to head out the door when Hikaru hollered, “Hey, Ben?”  
“Yeah?”  
“Would you...would you like to go out with me sometime?” Hikaru asked, fiddling with his apron.

Ben beamed, “I’d love too! When are you off?”  
“17:00,” Hikaru replied.  
Ben smiled, “I’ll see you then, Hikaru!”

 

They moved in together 3 months later.

 

\----- _2 Years Later_ \-----

 

“What’s got you so bummed out?” Hikaru asked.  
“Well, it just...there’s this young girl in our agency, Demora, but she hasn’t been adopted yet. But, since she’s been there, almost since birth, she’s starting to think that I’m her dad.”  
“Aww, that’s so sweet!”  
Ben sighed, “But the problem with that is, since she thinks I’m her dad, she will cry whenever I’m not there and if other people and couples come in to meet her, she thrashes around and won’t stop crying until I hold her.”  
“Oh!”  
“Yeah and it breaks my heart, because whenever I leave for the day, she cries all night until I come back the next morning.”

Hikaru thought for a moment, “Why don’t you just adopt her?” He suggested.  
Ben started to panic, “But Hikaru, we...we’ve never discussed that and we don’t have room for her and I don’t think I’m ready to be a father. I just...I don’t-”  
Hikaru cut Ben off, “Hey, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have suggested it. I just remember you telling me about how happy you would be whenever children from your agency would be adopted.” Hikaru held Ben in his arms before continuing, “I just thought that since you seemed so attached to this girl, Demora, that maybe we could start thinking about where our future is headed and what we want our future to be.” Hikaru soothed, giving Ben a soft kiss on his temples.

“Yeah, you’re right,” Ben smiled, grabbing his coat and tugging on Hikaru’s arm, “Come on!”  
“Wait! Where are we going?” Hikaru laughed.  
“To go meet her,” Ben murmured, “You’re going to love her.”

 

Less than 2 weeks later, Demora was fast asleep in her new crib, in her new home with her two dads. “I never thought I could fall in love with another person as quickly as I fell in love with you,” Hikaru whispered, careful not to wake their daughter.

  
“I told you, you’d love her,” Ben breathed.


	13. A Selfie Together

“Hikaru,” Ben called from the living room, “Come here.”

Hikaru emerged from the kitchen, “Yeah?” He asked, from behind a stack of boxes.

“Take a picture with me,” He spoke, holding his PADD in front of himself, angling it so Hikaru could be in the frame.

Hikaru laughed, “Don’t you want to unpack first before we take a picture?”

Ben smiled and swung his arm around Hikaru’s back, his hand resting on his waist. “No, let’s take one now, to encompass the excitement of moving into a new apartment!” 

“With all the boxes?” Hikaru asked, wrapping his arm around Ben’s back.

“Yes, with all the boxes!” Ben laughed warmly, “Now stop talking so I can take a picture.” The two smiled brightly at the camera and Ben snapped several pictures of them; one with them smiling naturally, one with Ben kissing Hikaru’s temple and last one with their lips sealed together.

  
“Alright, now let’s unpack these boxes!” Ben cheered, clapping his hands together.


	14. Flirting

Ben loved Hikaru, but the man could not flirt to save his life. He found this out the hard way one night when they were in the middle of a make out session in Hikaru’s dorm room. The two men were so wrapped up in each other, one might think they were one person. Hikaru broke off the kiss to mumble a, “Can you feel our love blossoming?” Into Ben’s ear. Ben burst out laughing at Hikaru’s attempt at flirting. “What you didn’t like it?” Hikaru asked, feeling self conscious.

“I love it, you’re terrible at flirting but I love it.”

 

Ben later found out that he was just as terrible at flirting as Hikaru was. They had been planting some herbs into a community garden when Ben whispered, “I dig you.” The two smiled at each other before Hikaru replied, “You've got the sweetest smile, I'd love to kiss those tulips.”

The second time they visited the community garden, Hikaru wrapped his arms around Ben’s hips and uttered a, “I'd love to get into your plants.” Ben blushed and turned around to face his boyfriend. He cupped his other cheeks with his hands and gave them a squeeze before answering, “Honeydew you want to come back to my place?” Hikaru smirked and dragged Ben back to their shared dorm room.

 

Their flirting continued far into their relationship, they would be halfway to third base when one of them would murmur something against the other’s skin. “You make me want to get down and dirty,” Hikaru spoke, hovering over Ben. Ben would just smile and reply with another one liner that they would both laugh at. “You must be a rosebush ‘cause you got me feelin’ thorny.” Ben answered, watching as Hikaru laughed into their otherwise silent room.

“I love you, Ben!” Hikaru replied, collapsing on top of his boyfriend, once he could stop his laughter.

“I love you too. Hikaru,” Ben echoed, kissing his boyfriend’s lips.

 

“I love your tulips,” Ben whispered when they broke their kiss. Hikaru face palmed and Ben laughed wildly.

“I love your tulips,” Hikaru echoed.


	15. At a Formal Starfleet Event

Hikaru almost couldn’t believe it, when he got the call on is comm. “Mr. Sulu, you’ve been selected for the position of Captain aboard the USS Excelsior.” He accepted the position immediately and told his family the good news. They were thrilled and they could wait to see Hikaru get promoted.

“Come on Hikaru!” Ben shouted from outside the bathroom, “We’ll be late!”

Hikaru brushed an invisible hair off of his grey dress uniform before opening the door with a, “Alright, let’s go.”

 

“This assembly calls Captain Hikaru S. Sulu. It is my honour to reward you with this commendation. You are hereby ordered to report to the USS Excelsior for duty.”

The ceremony went smoothly; when he had to recite the Captain’s oath, he scanned the crowd for his families. He saw his parents crying in the third row, next to Ben’s parents who were in a similar state. He saw the remaining Enterprise bridge crew in the fourth row and in the first row, front and center, was Ben and Demora beaming happily. Demora was bouncing on her toes, which was making her red princess cut dress, that ended just above her knees, swish around her. Hikaru could tell Ben was fighting back tears; his eyes were red but his smile was radiant. He looked stunning in his tailored grey suit, white shirt and a tie that matched Demora’s dress.

When he finished his captain’s oath, he heard a thunderous applause from the cadets, officers, instructors and family members in attendance. Hikaru beamed at the applause and was shocked when Demora ran at him with her arms open, giggling wildly. Kneeling down, he swung her off her feet and into his arms. He kissed her cheeks more times than he could count.

 

And if any of the commanding officers thought it was unprofessional for a formal Starfleet event, none of them could argue when they saw the young girl laughing in her father’s arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a lot of fun writing that little chapter. 
> 
> The next chapter will have some mild homophobia and if that makes you uncomfortable, you can skip chapter 16 an move onto chapter 17. I will completely understand if you do that. You can also stop reading my story, if that helps you. The last thing I ever want to do is trigger someone, so don't read 16 if that will trigger you or make you uncomfortable. But I promise the rest of the chapters are super sweet and you will love them.


	16. No Starfleet AU

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter has some mild homophobia in it. If this makes you uncomfortable then you can skip to chapter 17. Please don't read this chapter if you think it might trigger you. But the rest of the chapters are super sweet and fluffy. If you continue reading, I hope you will enjoy them.
> 
> Alright, so I was a little confused by this one, I wasn't sure if it meant that Starfleet didn’t exist at all or it did but they just couldn’t meet through Starfleet or be involved with it. So I went with a Past/Modern AU where Starfleet doesn’t exist in their lifetime, but maybe it does in the generations to come.

Hikaru sometimes had a hard time being a gay man in the streets of San Francisco. Despite the marriage equality that existed in the states, he still felt like he would be discriminated against if he wore any of his “Gay AF, Kind of Gay...Okay Really Gay, Two Grooms Are Better Than One,” Or, “I am Gay Gay Gay” Shirts. Which is why he looked forward to pride every year. He loved seeing the representation that would flood the streets and the people he would meet. He would always go with his friends, all of which were on the LGBT spectrum. Jim and Pavel were pansexual funseekers, Spock was a very quiet biromantic ace, Bones was a grumpy bisexual, who wouldn’t put up with anyone’s bullshit. Nyota was demisexual and Scotty wasn’t quite sure where he fell on the spectrum, but he knew he wasn’t straight.

They were all standing together, in a circle, waiting for the parade to begin when someone came up to Jim and tapped him on the shoulder.

“Hi! Can I help you?” Jim asked, opening the circle for the unknown man to step into. Hikaru looked over at the man and was shocked. Not only was he stunningly beautiful, he was wearing a, “Two grooms are better than one” shirt, the exact same shirt Hikaru was wearing right now.

“I’m in love,” Hikaru thought, “I’m so in love.”

“Uh, yeah...maybe,” The man mumbled, “I wasn’t sure about coming to pride because I’ve never been and I have no one to go with and I’m still...in the closet and I...I saw you guys and you all seemed so comfortable with who you are and I was wondering if...maybe I could j-join you all?”

“He’s still in the closet?” Hikaru asked himself, “Well he mentioned that he had no one to go with. Maybe he either doesn’t have anyone that supports him or no one knows about his orientation.” Hikaru felt his heart ache thinking about this man who seemed so scared to show who he really was. Even here at a pride parade, surrounded by supportive people, he was still timid and scared.

 

“Well of course you can join us!” Jim spoke, excitedly, bringing Hikaru back to reality. “I’ll introduce you to everyone,” Jim continued, “That’s Spock, Nyota, Pavel, Scotty, Hikaru, Bones and I’m Jim.”

“It’s nice to meet you all,” Ben murmured, looking down at the ground, “I’m Ben.”

Jim noticed Ben’s stiff form and placed a timid but reassuring hand on Ben’s back, “Hey, why don’t I direct you to Hikaru,” Jim suggested, lightly pushing Ben towards Hikaru, “It seems like you two already have a lot in common going by your matching shirts.” He smirked.

Ben looked down at his own shirt before looking up at Hikaru’s chest. “Huh, we are wearing the same shirts,” He thought to himself, as he approached Hikaru and gave him a timid smile. “Wait a minute! If we’re wearing the same shirts, then that means Hikaru must be gay too.” Ben looked down at Hikaru and gave him a genuinely happy smile.

“Oh, I’m done for!” Hikaru thought, “Just marry me now.”

 

\----- _After the Parade_ \-----

 

Hikaru had never had so much fun. He always loved pride, but this time, it was completely different. Throughout the parade, Ben started to show his colours and started to become more comfortable with the group of friends. Hikaru was almost disappointed when it was over, he didn't want this moment to end, not yet. Jim ended up suggesting that they all go and get some coffee together.

“My treat, I’ll pay for everyone!” Jim spoke.

Ben shifted awkwardly on his feet, “Umm, sorry I’ll..I’ll pass...” Jim’s forehead furrowed and Hikaru’s heart broke when he heard Ben’s broken voice speak.

“Oh, do you have somewhere else to be?” Jim asked, slightly oblivious.

Ben rubbed his neck and hunched in on himself, “No, I’m just...not comfortable with being...out yet...”

“Do you want to leave?” Hikaru asked softly, his face worried and sympathetic. Ben nodded. Hikaru swung his backpack off his shoulder and crouched down on the ground. He took out a large, plain sweater and a red long sleeve shirt. He handed the sweater to Ben as he zipped up the backpack and pulled the red shirt over his head.

“Does it fit okay?” Hikaru asked, “That’s the biggest thing I brought with me.”

“Yeah it’s fine,” He mumbled, “I’m sorry for being such a let down. I didn’t mean to interrupt and ruin your good time.”

“Hey, you didn’t ruin anything,” Bones spoke up, approaching Ben and placing a hand on Ben’s shoulder, “A lot of us have been where you are and it’s a terrifying, unsettling place to be. But we’re all here for you.”

“Yeah, we had a lot of fun with you Ben, we’d love to hang out with you again.” Nyota added.

“And if anyone, anyone at all, makes you feel uncomfortable or unsafe,” Pavel started.

“You can bet your arse that we’ll be there to defend you laddie,” Scotty finished.

 

Ben was on the verge of tears, “Really?”

“Yeah, we’re all here for you,” Hikaru murmured, bringing Ben into a large group hug. And that’s when Ben cried; he cried into whoever was wearing the “Asexuals don't fuck around” shirt. He never had this kind of love and support before and he was overwhelmed by the affection that these people, whom he just met, were giving him. When he separated from the hug, he wiped his tears with Hikaru’s sweater sleeve.

“Do you still want to go?” Hikaru asked again.

Ben sighed, “Yeah, I need to be somewhere quiet.”

“Okay, is it alright if I go with you?” Hikaru asked softly.

“Yeah, you can come.” Ben replied.

“Okay, well if you guys need us, just call, okay?” Nyota asked, concerned.

 

Hikaru led Ben away from the friend group and away from the crowds of people. He had no idea where he was going or where Ben lived. “So, uh...where are we going?” Hikaru asked.

“What do you mean?” Ben answered, confused.

“Well, are we going to your apartment? And where is your apartment?”

Ben was silent for a long time. “I don’t have an apartment.”

“You don’t?”

“No.”

Hikaru could read Ben’s tone enough to know that Ben was uncomfortable talking about this subject. He thought for a minute before suggesting, “We could go to my apartment if you want.”

Ben lit up at that suggestion, “Really?”

“Yeah, it’s only a few blocks away. Come on!” Hikaru beamed, dragging Ben down the sidewalk with him.

 

Once they entered Hikaru’s apartment, Hikaru pulled Ben into a sitting position on his bed. He timidly took Ben’s hands before speaking cautiously, “Do you want to talk about it?”

Ben flinched and looked down at the bedspread. Hikaru was just about to apologize for crossing a line when Ben spoke, “My parents are...unsupportive of the LGBT community.”

“Oh,” Hikaru thought, “I was kind of expecting that or something similar.”

Ben continued, “Technically, they don’t know that I’m gay but I guess they suspected that I was. It got to the point where I felt uncomfortable and unsafe living there.”

Hikaru’s grip tightened on Ben’s hands.

“So, I packed a bag of my things one night and I jumped out my window.” Ben took a shaky breath before continuing, “Ever since I’ve been running. I had to drop out of university because I ran out of money and I couldn’t get a job without having a home address and I couldn’t pay for an apartment. So I’ve been sleeping in parks for...6 months now.”

 

Hikaru didn’t say anything, he just wrapped his arms around Ben and rubbed his back, as Ben cried into his shoulder. “What do you do all day?” Hikaru asked, quietly.

“I have a small garden in a local park, which is where all my food comes from.”

“I’m so sorry,” Hikaru murmured.

“It’s okay, I’m better off without them. Nothing good would have happened if I stayed with them.”

“You could live with me.” Hikaru suggested.

Ben looked up in shock, “Really? Wait, I can’t ask you to do that.”

Hikaru kissed his cheek lightly, “Ben, you’re living outside, on your own. I can’t let you live out in the cold. If you don’t stay with me, at least stay with one of our friends.”

“Our friends?” Ben asked, lighting up.

“Yeah, they love you, in a platonic way, but they love you nonetheless.”

“How can you tell?” Ben asked.

“I’ve known them all my life, I know them like the back of my hand.” Hikaru replied.

Ben smiled, he never thought he’d have friends that would accept him and accept that he wasn’t super comfortable with letting people know he was gay. And yet, here he was; he had 6 friends and a potential boyfriend. He couldn’t be happier, “Hikaru, if you’re still offering...can I live with you?”

Hikaru pecked Ben lightly on the lips, “Of course and if you need anything, I can help you get it. Okay?”

“Okay. Thank you so much Hikaru!”

“What did you do in university?” Hikaru asked, changing the subject.

“Botany. I was working on my bachelor's in plant science and after that I was going to work on my PhD. But that’s never going to happen now...” Ben sighed.

Hikaru was practically radiating light at the mention of botany, “No shit! Really? I’m on my third year for my bachelor’s in botany!”

 

From there, the two men talked for hours, over their shared love of plants. They smiled, laughed and giggled; telling the other weird stories from university and all the things they learned in their time at uni. “Wow, can you believe that we both were on the same career track?” Ben asked, lying down on the bed, with Hikaru lying down next to him.

“Which university did you go to before you dropped out?” Hikaru asked, looking over at Ben.

“Silver Creek.”

Hikaru jaw hit the floor, “Oh man...”

“What?” Ben asked, confused. Hikaru reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet. He took out his student ID and handed it to Ben. Printed on the front of the card was Hikaru’s school photo and his name printed underneath that. But what was more surprising, to the right of his name was “Silver Creek University” printed on Hikaru’s school ID.

“So you’re saying that...”

“We went to the same school, on the same career path and we would have met at school.” Hikaru answered.

“Wow, that’s incredible,” Ben replied, handing Hikaru back his ID.

 

Ben was a little caught off guard when Hikaru’s hand cupped his cheek. They locked eyes, Hikaru silently asking Ben if this was okay. Ben gave a slight nod and Hikaru moved closer to Ben, but did not touch him, other than his hand on his cheek. He waited as Ben slowly reached his hand out and placed it on Hikaru’s arm. The two smiled at each other before both leaning in, sealing their lips together. Ben had never felt so happy, he thought there were tears falling from his face, but he couldn’t tell. He was too focused on the man in front of him, to pay attention to anything else.

When the two separated, Ben couldn’t help but smile. He hesitated before saying, “I...I think I might be falling for you.” Hikaru smiled and pecked Ben on the lips, “I think I am too.”

 

Hikaru moved so he could cuddle up to Ben’s side. They ended up falling asleep, wrapped up in each other’s arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so the rest of the story, from here on out, is super sweet and fluffy. I hope you'll enjoy them.
> 
> Also, all the shirts Hikaru mentions are real shirts from [lookhuman.com](https://www.lookhuman.com). The links to all the shirts are listed here: [Gay AF](https://www.lookhuman.com/design/321229-gay-af), [Kinda Gay Okay Really Gay](https://www.lookhuman.com/design/323537-kinda-gay-okay-really-gay), [Two Grooms Are Better Than One](https://www.lookhuman.com/design/88846-two-grooms-are-better-than-one) and [I am Gay Gay Gay](https://www.lookhuman.com/design/88782-i-am-gay-gay-gay).
> 
> And Spock's Asexuals Don't Fuck Around shirt is [here](https://www.lookhuman.com/design/95625-asexuals-don-t-fuck-around) .


	17. Arguing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Super cute chapter, I hope you'll enjoy it.

“What? No way I earned it!” Hikaru huffed, putting his hands on his hips.

“Oh yeah? By doing what?” Ben argued.

“By being the best pilot in the Federation!” Hikaru countered, “Now give me that brownie, Ben!” Hikaru huffed.

“Yeah right,” Ben remarked sarcastically, “Not going to happen.”

Hikaru stomped his feet before seething, “Ben Kai Sulu! If you don’t give me that brownie, then you’re going to feel the wrath of Hikaru ass kicking Sato Sulu!”

“Did you just stomp your feet?” Ben asked as he burst out laughing, “What are you, six?”

“Shut up!” Hikaru called out lamely, “It’s not funny!”

“It’s pretty damn funny,” Ben giggled, wiping the tears from his eyes. “Okay, if you stop being such a child, I’ll let you have the brownie.”

Hikaru, mildly annoyed, replied with a, “I don’t need your pity dessert. If you’re going to play it that way, then you might as well have it.”

Ben smirked, “Okay!”

Hikaru’s eyes narrowed, “You-you planned this, didn’t you!”

“Oh, yes I did!” Ben snickered, turning around to grab the last brownie.

Hikaru answered, “Well then you can’t have it! It’s mine th-” He cut himself off as he turned around and saw the empty plate, where the last brownie that they were fighting over should have been.

“What? Where did it go?” Hikaru asked, waving his arms around dramatically.

“Uh, Hikaru?” Ben spoke up, pointing at a trail of crumbs leading from the kitchen to the dining room. “Look.” The two men shared a look before following the trail of chocolate. They came to a stop when the trail disappeared under the dining room table. They both knelt down on the ground to find their daughter, under the table, with chocolate and crumbs all over her face. Her hands were coated in chocolate and her mouth was full of brownie.

“I’m sorry,” She mumbled, her mouth still full.

Hikaru and Ben could do nothing but laugh at the ridiculous scene. When they finally managed to stifle their laughter, Hikaru murmured, “It’s okay Dem.”

Ben reached over to clean Demora’s face with a wet cloth as he spoke, “You deserve it way more than we do.”


	18. Out With Friends

It was Jim’s idea, to get the bridge crew to bond and spend some quality time together after Krall’s attack. Jim had invited all the members of the bridge crew, but only the main seven, including himself, Bones and Scotty, confirmed they’d be going. Hikaru was hesitant and called Jim to say he wasn’t coming because he wasn’t going to leave his family, not again and not this quickly. So Jim told Hikaru he could bring Ben and Demora along with him. Which is why the three of them were walking to Obsidian Plaza, in the entertainment district, at 15:00 on a Saturday.

“This is a terrible idea,” Hikaru whispered to Ben, under his breath. Demora was oblivious to his comment, skipping along the pathways to Fireland Lazertag.

Ben rolled his eyes as he slung his arm around Hikaru’s back, “Oh stop being dramatic, you’re acting like Jim again.”

“I am not!” Hikaru argued.

“Yes, you are,” Ben replied, giving his husband’s forehead a flick, “Now let’s go have some fun!”

 

When they walked in, everyone else was already there and were separated into three groups, yellow, blue and red. “Ah, Hikaru, Ben and Dem!” Kirk greeted, “It’s about time you showed up.” He leaned over to grab two yellow and one blue Laser Tag vests; he handed the blue vest to Ben and the yellows to Hikaru and Demora. “Alright, if you haven’t figured it out, we have chosen our teams based on our Starfleet divisions; Command, Science and Engineering and Communications.” Kirk patted Ben on the back and sent him over to the blue team with Spock and Bones. Pavel walked over and joined Hikaru, Demora and Jim on the Yellow team and the Red Team of Scotty, Nyota and Jaylah waited for further instructions.

“Alright, teams assemble,” Kirk called out, “Team Yellow will be known as Team Cool Kids.”

“Jim, that’s a bit-” Bones interjected only to have Jim cut him off, “Team Blue will be known as The Nerds.”

“Affirmative.” Spock spoke as Ben let out a cry of, “HEY!” Ben placed his hands on his hips before arguing, “I am not a nerd.”

“You plant flowers for a living,” Jim replied, pointing a finger at Ben, “You’re a nerd.” Ben glared at Jim, but accepted his position onboard Team Nerds.

“And lastly, Team Red will be known as the Tech Guys.”

The tech guys shrugged, “I’m fine with that,” Nyota answered.

Kirk smiled and shouted out, “Alright, everyone to your starting positions! Let’s do this thing!”

 

The teams waited until they heard the buzzer, announcing the start of the round. Everyone came out from their starting positions and all hell broke loose. As it turned out, Demora was surprisingly good at laser tag; her small body made her harder to see and she could avoid the shots directed at her with ease. No one was surprised when Jaylah had scored over 15 points in the first round for the Tech Guys. Scotty had just followed her around the whole time, giving her cover that she didn’t really need, but she appreciated the company.

Kirk had sacrificed himself several times for the sake of his team and Nyota and Pavel were shocked when they saw Bones leap out from behind a large crate and shoot Spock square in the chest, “Ah HA!” He yelled, “Take that you fucking pointy eared hobgoblin.” Spock looked confused and Nyota and Pavel were staring at Bones with their jaws on the floor. “What?” He asked, “I’ve just always wanted to do that.”

Nyota and Pavel both shot him in the chest before running away.

 

Ben had been crouched behind a wall, he had been waiting to shoot the next person that walked by. When he heard the sound of footsteps, he waited for a couple of seconds before blindly firing down the hallway. He heard a powering down sound, signaling that someone had been hit. He jumped out to see Hikaru standing there in defeat, waiting for his respond timer to run out.

“You betrayed me!” Hikaru gasped, dramatically.

Ben laughed, “You’ll never catch up to us! We’ll win this whole thing and there’s nothing you can do about it!” Ben ran away before Hikaru’s timer had run out.

 

When the final round’s buzzer sounded, all teams groaned. They were having so much fun that none of them wanted to stop. A few minutes later, they found out their scores. Blue had won with a score of 125 and Yellow and Red tying with a 117.

They all looked at each other before Scotty suggested, “Rematch?” They all smirked and ran back to their starting positions before the buzzer sounded again.

They then decided to make lazer tag a regular monthly event.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I'll try and explain the teams better than I did in the story. Since the teams are divided by the divisions in Starfleet, Jim, Pavel and Hikaru are in Command so they would be yellow. Scotty and Nyota are in Communications and Engineering, so they're red. And Bones and Spock would be in Science and Medical, so they'd be blue. The next obvious one was Jaylah, she is extremely skilled at engineering and takes an interest in it, so she joins Scotty and Nyota.  
> I like to imagine that Ben is a botanist, so in this story, that's what he does for a living. So, since botany is a science, he joins the blue team. Lastly, there's Demora. In the prime timeline, she follows in Hikaru's footsteps and becomes Helmsman on the Enterprise. So, if she did this in the alternate timeline, she would be in command. So she joins Hikaru, Pavel and Jim on the yellow team.  
> I hope that explains why I separated the teams like that. 
> 
> I loved writing this little chapter and I hope you enjoyed it!!!


	19. First Date

“Oh, come on Hikaru,” Ben drawled, “It’ll be fun!”

“Yeah, for you.” Hikaru huffed, “You get to watch me embarrass myself by turning our baking into a burnt crisp.”

“That's why we're taking a class and that's why you've got me! Other than my grandmother, I'm the best baker in my  family,” Ben answered proudly.

“This isn’t going to go well,” Hikaru muttered to himself.

  
  


“Alright! Welcome everyone to our beginners baking class!” A man, with a flour covered apron, spoke, “Today we’ll be making Lemon Meringue Pie. We will start by preheating our oven.” 

The instructor slowly went over the first few steps, before walking around the room to check on everyone’s progress. Ben was working on getting their pie crust in the oven, before he helped guide Hikaru through the process of whisking the sugar, flour, cornstarch, and salt for their pie filling.

“So I add the flour to this too?” Hikaru asked, looking confused.

Ben simply laughed, “Yes, add all of it.” Hikaru moved to grab the cup of flour and pour it in. “But slowly, otherwise it will go everywhere.” Ben added. Hikaru nodded and added the flour, painfully slow into the pan. “Okay, good,” Ben encouraged, “Now, keep whisking that and don’t stop!”

Hikaru gave a mock salute with his non-whisking hand, “Aye, Aye Captain.” 

Ben may or may not have thrown flour into Hikaru’s hair.

After Hikaru finished that, Ben stirred in some water, lemon juice and lemon zest to Hikaru’s mixture. The instructor, who was standing behind them, spoke, “That’s looks excellent so far. You can crank up the heat and stir your filling until it starts to boil.” 

 

Ben and Hikaru flew threw the next steps and before they knew it, they were pouring their filling into their baked pie crust.

“I told you, you could do it!” Ben answered, lightly shoving Hikaru. Hikaru blushed, before stretching up on his toes to kiss Ben’s cheek, “I couldn’t have done it without you.” Ben smiled as he reached for Hikaru’s hand and linked their fingers together.

The instructor came back and went through the steps for making the meringue. Once Hikaru and Ben had finished their meringue, which Hikaru left in the capable hands of Ben, they put their near perfect pie in the oven.

“Okay, I’ll admit it, this was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed myself.” Hikaru confessed. Ben smirked and chuckled a, “I told you that you would have fun.”

Ben leaned over and wrapped an arm around Hikaru’s back. Hikaru leaned into his arm, feeling protected as he breathed in Ben’s scent. “I could get used to this,” He hummed quietly.

 

When their pie was finished, they took turns feeding each other pie, while staring each other with starry eyes. They were blushing brightly, but they both knew this was the first of many dates in their relationship. Ben walked Hikaru home; but once they arrived at Hikaru’s apartment, Hikaru dragged Ben inside. He was not willing to let this man go, not yet. Several hours later, they fell asleep, cuddled together on Hikaru’s couch.

 


	20. Space Pirate AUs

One of Demora’s favourite games to play was space pirates, a fantasy game Hikaru created that she played with her dads whenever they were home. It involved breaking into a pirate ship, in this case, their apartment, and stealing a stash of gold without getting caught. If you were caught, you would fight for the gold and who ever won the duel, would win the game; unless the thief got out with the gold undetected.

 

Demora waited for 30 seconds before cracking open the front door and crawling through the opening. She peered around the corner to the kitchen, it was clear, but there were no signs of any gold. She crawled her way to the bedrooms, stopping to hide behind a wall, so Hikaru didn’t see her. She opened her parents bedroom and no one was there. She checked under the bed, “Bingo!” She whispered under her breath, when she spotted the gold pile under the bed. She grabbed the gold and quietly made her way out of the bedroom. She was almost out the door when she heard a voice from behind her, “Ah ha! So you thought you could get away? Did you?” Hikaru asked, as Demora turned around.

“We can’t allow you to escape with our treasure,” Ben added, stepping out of the kitchen.

Demora stood up and drew her sword from her belt, “I challenge you for it, Captain to Captain. The winner gets everything.”

Hikaru smirked, “Well, well, well, you think you can beat me? A master swordsman?”

Demora smirked back, “I know I can,” she answered, jabbing her sword in Hikaru’s direction. The two parried around the apartment until Demora successfully stabbed Hikaru with her plastic sword.

Hikaru fell to the ground in a heap, “Oh no, I have been defeated. Please, I do not wish to die,” Hikaru let out dramatically. Demora giggled and sat next to him, “You’re silly Daddy!”

“I’m silly because I love you!” Hikaru answered, kissing Demora’s cheek as he pulled her against his chest.

 

“I love you too!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I messed up and uploaded 21 instead of 20. Sorry about that, I've fixed it now and they should be in the right order now.


	21. AU of Your Choice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on a old AU I saw on tumblr last year where Person A is blind and Person B is deaf, but they still find ways to communicate. 
> 
> Some of Hikaru and Ben's friends introduce them and help them talk to each other. So, Ben will ask Hikaru a question and their friends will ask Hikaru that question and tell Ben his answer; and vice versa. Their friends also help them use print on hands so they can communicate with each other when they start falling in love.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it!

Hikaru wasn’t always blind and he still dreamed in bright, vibrant colours; but it was nothing in comparison to seeing from day to day like most people could. When he was little, he remembers staring at the stars, wishing one day to be among them. But he lost his vision at 13 in a freak fencing accident, making him unable to see the stars anymore. He still dreams of them but they’re dark, muddled and dim; he tries to stay positive, “At least I can still remember them,” He tells himself, “At least my mind can still show me them.”

 

Hikaru loved Nyota for many reasons, the first being, she was his childhood friend since kindergarten and she never left his side. She was always there for him, through the good and the bad. She was there to help him after the fencing incident and acted as his guide until he could get around safely, without her help.

One day, many years later, when he’s 18, he forgets his cane and he collides, quite literally with Ben. “Oh sorry about that,” He chuckles lightly, “I forgot my cane at home and I couldn’t see you there.” To his surprise, the person he collided with said nothing. Hikaru was just about to ask why they weren’t responding when a voice spoke hesitantly. “Um, hi! I’m Leonard, but everyone calls me Bones and the man you just collided with is Ben.”

Hikaru was confused why Ben wasn’t speaking for himself when Leo-Bones continued, “I’m speaking on Ben’s behalf because Ben is deaf and can’t speak with you directly.”

“Oh...” Hikaru thought, that made a lot more sense.

“Okay, well I’m Hikaru,” He waved in the general direction of Bones’s voice, “Could you tell Ben I’m sorry for bumping into him and I would love to buy him a drink as an apology?”

Leonard turned to Ben and Hikaru heard Bones mumble a, “This is Hikaru, he’s sorry for bumping into you. He’d like to buy you a drink.” There was a beat of silence before Bones spoke up again, “He said he’d love a drink and that he should be apologizing to you, for colliding with you.”

“Ben would like to walk you there, if that’s okay with you.” Bones added. Without saying anything, Hikaru held his arm out. He felt his heart pounding in his chest when Ben took his arm and helped Hikaru to a nearby cafe.

Hikaru couldn’t help but notice that Ben was taller than him. Hikaru could feel his shoulder bumping against Ben’s bicep as they entered the cafe.

  


After that, Leonard and Nyota quickly got acquainted and took turns helping Hikaru and Ben talk to each other. Hikaru was fascinated by Ben’s stories and found himself falling in love with the man who had literally bumped into his life. He would smile warmly at Bones’s and Nyota’s voices as they maintained a steady flow of conversation between him and Ben.

Ben loved watching the emotions flow through Hikaru’s face when he spoke, he wished he could hear his voice, hear what he was saying that was making him so emotional. He would always smile at Nyota and Bones in hopes that they could tell Hikaru how much he loved him.

 

It wasn’t long after they first met that Nyota and Bones found Hikaru and Ben making out in the back of that cafe. They helped them find a form of communication that they both could use to communicate. They started off with print on palm, slowly spelling out different words against the other’s hand with their finger. Ben would write love over and over on Hikaru’s hand; he loved the smile and the silent laugh he got every time he wrote that word on Hikaru. They also created signs that would make talking easier; they would place their hand over the other’s heart for love, one finger starting at the other’s eye and trailing down was sad or cry, squeezing their hand once was hello and twice was goodbye. And for long distance, they would text. Hikaru would use the speech to text function on his phone to send to receive messages from Ben, while Ben would smile happily whenever his phone lit up with a new message from his boyfriend.

After they had been dating for 6 months and had moved in together, Hikaru finally confessed his love of stars to Ben.

“Sad to lose them,” He spelt on Ben’s hand. Ben felt tears flood his vision as he saw the depressed look fall upon Hikaru. “Lost them after the accident.” Ben knew about the fencing accident, Bones explained the gruesome story that Hikaru went through at the young age of 13; his own story of being born deaf was nothing in comparison to the battle Hikaru went through.

“Lost my dreams too.” Hikaru answered again, “Faded into the dark black.”

 

Without saying anything Ben stood up and helped Hikaru out onto their balcony. He sat down, guiding Hikaru down, in front of him onto a lounge chair. “I am going to help you,” Ben explains, taking off Hikaru’s shirt. “I’m going to show you the stars,” He writes on Hikaru’s back, one letter at a time.

Ben looked up at the sky and saw several constellations out. “There’s Scorpio,” He wrote with his left hand on Hikaru’s palm as he made three dots in a vertical line, one to the left of the three and one below that.

“And Libra,” Drawing what Hikaru saw as the right side of a cartoon heart.

“Oh, and Hercules is out tonight,” Ben explained before making a complicated design on Hikaru’s back slowly, so the man could follow his movements. Ben continued on, drawing Cassiopeia, Ursa Minor, Draco and Lyra. He only stopped when he felt Hikaru’s fingers grab his drawing hand. Hikaru slowly turned around to face Ben as he wrote, “Thank you.”

 

Ben smiled, “You’re welcome.”

“You have given me back my stars.”

 


	22. Demora's First Day of School

“No! Papa, don’t leave!” Demora wailed.

Ben felt his heart break in his chest, he knew Demora’s first day of school wouldn’t be easy on either of them. It only made it worse that he had to get to work soon and didn’t have time to argue with Demora. He knelt down infront of her and wiped the tears from her eyes. “Hey sweetie, it’s okay.”

“No it’s not,” She sobbed, “You and Daddy are both leaving me.”

“Oh Dem, sweetheart,” Ben cooed, bringing the girl into his arms, “We’re not leaving you, we’re coming back for you. We always will.” Ben rubbed her hair softly before continuing, “We love you, I will come back for you when you’re done at school and your father will be back after his time in space.” 

“Promise?” She asked, holding out her tiny pinky. Ben linked his pinky with her own, “I promise,” He murmured, “And after school today, we can go get you some ice cream. How’s that sound?”

Demora lit up at the sound of ice cream, “Okay!” She gave Ben an enthusiastic hug before skipping into her classroom. 

 

Several hours later Ben waited outside Demora’s classroom for her. She was one of the first to leave the room and upon spotting Ben, she ran towards him as he scooped her up and into his arms. 

 

“And then we finger painted and hung them up in the room. Oooo, and we played with blue sand and got to run around outside and we built towers with holo blocks.” Demora explained to Hikaru through their video call. Demora was sitting Ben’s lap, so she could see the screen from the top of Ben’s desk.

“Wow!” Hikaru spoke energetically, despite the tired look in his eyes. “It sounds like you had a lot of fun. Did you have a lot of fun Dem?” He asked.

She nodded her head quickly, almost whacking Ben’s chin with her head.

“Well, I’m sorry I wasn’t there to send you off to school, but I’m glad that you had fun.” Hikaru smiled before letting out a huge yawn.

“Dem, why don’t we say our goodbyes and let Daddy get some rest?” Ben suggested.

“Awww, but Paapaaa,” She whined, crossing her arms across her chest.

“How about you change into your pajamas and we’ll sing you a song before bed?” Hikaru asked.

“Okay!” She smiled before dashing off to her room.

And as her parents sung her to sleep, she dreamed about their future family reunions.


	23. Swapped Careers (Sulu is on Yorktown, Ben is on the Enterprise)

Hikaru loved living on Yorktown, the star base was beautifully constructed and provided a perfect view of the stars surrounding the city. It was a perfect place to raise Demora, for her to grow up in the heart of the Federation; with so much diversity surrounding her, she would learn the importance of unity between species and cultures. The only downfall was Ben wasn’t there with them. Yeah, there were video calls, but there wasn’t any real interaction with him.

“Hey ‘Ru,” Ben spoke, from his Enterprise quarters. He still hadn’t changed out of his uniform, the blue fabric popping against the white walls of his quarters. 

“Hey, Ben,” Hikaru replied, “How’s my favourite botanist doing?” 

“I’m fine,” He yawned, “But we’ve been out here for 966 days, I feel like I’m losing my mind out here.”

“Ben don’t you dare get space madness on me!” Hikaru teased. He waited a moment before asking, “Do you know when your next shore leave is?”

“Yeah, it’s in a couple of days,” Ben answered, resting his head on his hands; by doing so, Hikaru could clearly see the metallic silver lieutenant stripe on Ben’s blue uniform. Ben had only recently been promoted, just before their 5 year mission. Hikaru was so proud watching Ben stand in front of his Starfleet peers and receive his promotion. At the time,  he had struggled to contain his joy and excitement so that he didn’t wake their 8 month old daughter, who was fast asleep in Hikaru’s arms.

 

“I miss you,” Hikaru hummed, “And so does Dem.”

“Where is she?” Ben asked.

“She’s asleep, she’s got school tomorrow and I didn’t know you’d be calling today.” Hikaru answered.

“I can’t wait to see you,” Ben sighed, “The other botanists keep teasing me because I keep a photo of Demora on my lab station and a picture of the three of us in my back pocket.”

“You keep a picture of us with you?” Hikaru questioned.

“Yeah so that you two are always with me, wherever I go.” Ben smiled, reaching behind him to pull of a photo of their little family. It was the picture they took just after Dem was born and he and Hikaru were holding her in their arms.

Hikaru beamed, he’d never been so moved by Ben’s heart as he was right now. Hikaru choked up as he spoke, “We’ll be waiting for you at the docking station.”

“I’ll be there,” Ben whispered, softly.

 

Hikaru couldn’t be happier when he reunited with Ben at Yorktown’s docking station. It was the first time their family had seen each other in three years and Hikaru was so happy to see Ben back home with them. Hikaru beamed when Demora ran up to Ben and he scooped her into his arms and kissed her over and over until she was in a fit of giggles. Then the family made their way back home to spend some quality time together. 


	24. Lazy Mornings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is based on another one of [Sono's](http://sonoberg.tumblr.com/) art pieces, which can be found [here](http://sonoberg.tumblr.com/post/148636361185/just-an-ordinary-day-of-hikaru-and-ben).

Ben loved mornings, he absolutely adored them. He loved watching the light pour into their Yorktown apartment, he loved the refreshing morning showers he always had before work and watering the household plants that were scattered throughout the apartment. But most of all, he loved the smell of coffee that would fill the apartment when he made it in the morning. But none of that ‘replicator crap’, as Ben would call it; real coffee, from coffee beans that were ground up and put into a little package, that you poured water over.

When the kettle went off, Ben set the coffee pot on the counter and placed the coffee filter over top of it. He scooped two spoonfuls of coffee into the filter before pouring the water into the filter and letting it drip into the coffee pot.

 

He was just about to set the kettle down when a pair of arms wrapped around his chest and a head bumped against his neck.

“‘Morning,” Hikaru mumbled, still half asleep.

Ben smiled as he set the kettle down on the counter.

“Good morning, Hikaru,” Ben cooed.

“Smells good,” He murmured, giving the back of Ben's neck a quick kiss.

“The coffee, or me?” Ben asked, chuckling.

“Both,” Hikaru hummed.

“Would you like a cup? It’s just about finished.” Ben replied, grabbing two coffee mugs from the cabinets.

“I’d love one,” He answered.

 

Ben poured each of them a cup and followed Hikaru into the living room. He handed Hikaru his cup and sat down next to him.“I missed what real coffee tasted like.” Hikaru confessed after taking a sip of his coffee. “Don’t get me wrong, being on the Enterprise is great, but I miss these things.” He spoke, gesturing at his cup, “The little details that space and the Federation forgets for the sake of convenience.”

“Well, maybe by the time you’re Captain of your own ship, they’ll have real coffee again.” Ben added, bumping into Hikaru’s arm playfully.

“I sure hope so,” Hikaru chirped, “There’s no way I can go through another 5 year, or longer, mission without real coffee.”

Ben had an idea, “How about, for every day you video call me or Dem, I will send you an additional bag of coffee during resupply stops.”

Hikaru smiled, “You’ve got yourself a deal, Mr. Sulu!”

“It’s been a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Sulu!”

The two burst out laughing, something they hadn’t been able to do together, in such close proximity, for a very long time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please go check out [Sono's](http://sonoberg.tumblr.com/) blog. They're super sweet and run an amazing Star Trek blog and their art is incredible.


	25. Meeting the Parents (or The Enterprise Crew)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Meeting the ~~the Parents~~ (or The Enterprise Crew)

“Do I look okay?” Ben asked nervously, fidgeting with his tie.

“You look fine,” Hikaru cooed, “And lose the tie, they aren’t very formal. This is only supposed to be a casual thing.”

“You sure?” Ben asked, looking panicked. Hikaru reached over and took off Ben’s tie, “Don’t worry, they’re going to love you.”

“Can you describe them again?” Ben asked for the hundredth time. Hikaru sighed, but complied. “The smug one is Jim, the Vulcan is Spock, Nyota’s the only woman in our friend group. Usually, the one passed out on the floor is Scotty, Pavel’s always flirting with someone and Bones is the grumpy doctor, you do not want to get on his bad side.” Ben gulped, he wasn’t sure he liked this Bones character.  

 

“Hi Ben it’s nice to meet you,” Nyota spoke, “I’m Nyota.”

“Jim.”

“Call me Scotty.”

“Greetings, I am Spock.”

“Bones.”

“Pavel, please call me Pasha...but call me Pashka is you vant to get to know me ewen better.” Pavel answered, his eyes trailing down Ben’s body. Bones promptly smacked Pavel on the back of his head, “Don’t hit on the man,” Bones scolded, “He’s taken and you’ve just met him.”

“It’s nice to meet all of you,” Ben coughed, still recovering from being flirted with.

 

The night went on really well, they had just gone out to a new restaurant that had opened in San Francisco. It wasn’t long until Ben felt like he was a part of the bridge crew. He shared many interests with the fellow cadets. Spock shared his love of reading and traditional chess. Nyota had the same love for books, real books with covers and pages you could turn, that Ben had.

Later on, when he was talking with Bones, he discovered Bones had a daughter that no one else knew about. And in turn, Ben admitted he wanted to have children.In a hushed tone, Bones asked Ben, “Can you see yourself having kids with Hikaru?”

Ben looked over at the bar and saw Hikaru chatting away to the crew, “Yeah, I can.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally, I wanted Hikaru to meet Ben's parents and Ben to meet Hikaru's parents, but instead, I had Ben meet the bridge crew. I will probably write a story later on about Hikaru and Ben meeting each other's parents.


	26. Shore Leave

Hikaru had almost forgotten what Earth looked like. After all his time in space, on the Enterprise and on Yorktown, he’d forgotten the beauty of his hometown, San Francisco. He had just landed with his family just outside of the city and Demora was bursting with excitement. She’d hadn’t been to earth for many years and she wasn’t old enough at the time to remember her time on earth. To her, this was a whole new planet.

Demora had insisted they go sightseeing, saying things like, “I wanna see the big red bridge, the famous one,” and “Papa! Daddy! Can I see where you grew up? Where you met? Our old apartment?” The whole flight. 

 

They took Demora all over the city, to the Golden Gate Bridge, where they took several photos together; both on the bridge and in the parks on the ends of the bridge. After that, they took her on a old fashioned streetcar, the last of it’s kind. They stopped for lunch before heading to a chocolatier’s shop that Hikaru and Ben visited on multiple occasions. They took her to old book stores and malls, to music stores and a holo gaming arcade.

They ended the trip at the market place, where Demora insisted that she should get a pet to bring home to Yorktown. 

“Papa! Daddy!” She screeched, pointing at a small, shaggy dog with a horn on it’s head, “Can I get him? He’s really sweet and he’s quiet and I love him.” Hikaru and Ben shared a glance, they both knew they couldn’t refuse Demora. 

“Of course, sweetie.” They answered. Demora beamed and scooped up the dog and into her arms. Ben paid the woman selling the dog and they left in the direction of their old apartment they had left on earth. 

 

They were on their way, when they had passed the Academy grounds. For whatever reason, Hikaru and Ben didn’t realize that until Demora pointed at the campus and spoke proudly, “That’s where I’m going to go to school!”

The men smiled, “Well, if you keep getting the grades you’re getting now, Starfleet will be begging to have you at the Academy.” Hikaru answered, lifting her up into her arms. She handed off her dog, Mr. Snuffles, to Ben.

 

When they walked into their apartment, it felt cold and dead. Which was appropriate since no one had lived there in over 5 years. They had moved most of their stuff to Yorktown but they kept the things they either didn’t need or that they didn’t have room for, on earth. Ben replicated a bowl of dog food for Mr. Snuffles and sat with his family on the floor of their apartment. They played several indoor games until it was Demora’s bedtime. Ben carried her to her old room and lay her down on her bed. Luckily, all their beds were here because Yorktown provided them with beds and there wasn’t a way to transport their beds all the way to Yorktown. Demora was asleep before Hikaru and Ben pulled the covers over her.

As they crawled into their own bed, exhausted, they curled up against each other. “I missed being on earth,” Ben spoke into the dark apartment.

“Yeah,” Hikaru sighed, “Earth makes you feel grounded in a way that the Enterprise and Yorktown don’t. I guess it’s because you’re on an actual planet, as opposed to some structure floating in space.” 

“Well, gee Hikaru,” Ben teased, “That sure makes me feel better about where we live.”

Hikaru tightened himself around Ben, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to-”

“It’s fine,” Ben cooed. He waited a long time before murmuring, “Goodnight, my love.”

Hikaru propped himself up to give Ben a soft kiss, “Goodnight, sweetheart.”


	27. Flowers

It started as a simple apology, something that Hikaru did when he crossed a line and hurt Ben’s feelings. He showed up at his door with a small, potted aloe plant. Ben looked confused until Hikaru explained, “Because I hurt you, this is to heal those wounds.” Ben smiled and accepted the plant and Hikaru’s apology.

From there, it got out of control, sometimes they would give plants to each other as an apology, but usually it was to show their love to one another. Like when Ben got Hikaru half a dozen lavender roses for their 1 year anniversary. “Love at first sight, the attraction I felt towards you since the moment we first met.” Or the time when Demora, with the help of Hikaru, gave Ben a Marjoram plant. “Happy!” She declared proudly, as Hikaru helped her hand the plant over to Ben.

Hikaru loved when Ben and Demora got him a pot of rosemary before he left for his 5 year mission. “To remember us,” Ben spoke with tears in his eyes. Hikaru smiled and hugged his family tightly, “I could never forget you.” He answered as he took the potted plant and the rest of his luggage onto the Enterprise. He gave one final wave to them as he walked down the docking tube, connecting the Enterprise to Yorktown’s docking station. 

 

When Hikaru returned home, 3 years later, Ben and Demora welcomed him home with a heartwarming embrace and some potted red tulips. “Because we love you so much, we always have and we’ve missed you, Hikaru.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The following are the meanings of the flowers mentioned in this one shot.  
> Aloe: Healing, protection, affection   
> Lavender Roses: love at first sight  
> Marjoram: Joy and Happiness.  
> Rosemary: Remembrance  
> Red Tulips: Declaration of love


	28. Being Drunk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a sequel to #10: Marriage.

Ben didn’t remember much of the reception and later he found out that Hikaru had no recollection of it either. From the pictures the two of them took, along with their friends pictures and stories they were able to piece together their wedding reception. 

Neither Hikaru or Ben had remembered their reception because they were way past the point of drunk. It started with the Champagne and once they ran out, they drank everything else; the sake Hikaru’s mom brought them, Scotty’s scotch, which he was very annoyed by, the Andorian Ale and the Vulcan brandy. The newlyweds tried to feed each other pieces of their dinners, but gave up after Hikaru stabbed Ben’s eye with his spoon and Ben had gotten sauce all over Hikaru’s face. 

When they were told it was time for their first dance, the two stumbled into the middle of the room, surrounded by their family and friends. Most of which were either filming the drunk husbands or watching in horror as the two tried to waltz around the room. To everyone’s surprise, the newlyweds danced as if they were sober. Ben wisheds he could have remembered their reception, but when he woke up to Hikaru drooling on the pillow next to him, he couldn’t complain. He was married to his best friend, his botany buddy, his significant other.

He was married to the best pilot in Starfleet, and no one could compete with that.


	29. Domestic Fluff

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is also inspired by one of Sono's art pieces that can be found [here](http://sonoberg.tumblr.com/post/148891878970/text-hikaru-ben-hikaru-thank-ben).

“Ben, I’ve got your coffee,” Hikaru called while walking into the bedroom. 

They were going to read their separate books on the bed, while enjoying each other’s company. It was something the two loved doing and made a regular habit out of. It unfortunately was ended abruptly when Hikaru had to leave for his 5 year mission. But now that Hikaru was back, they could enjoy their late night reading sessions again. 

Ben was sitting on the bed, leaning back against a pillow while reading a small paperback novel Hikaru had gotten him for his birthday. But there was something different about the man; pushed up against his face and resting on his nose was a pair of glasses.

Hikaru felt his face heat up as he blushed brightly. The man in front of him, his husband that he had not seen in almost 3 years, looked absolutely stunning. Ben looked up from his book and noticed Hikaru standing in front of him. “Ah, Hikaru, thank-” Ben cut himself off as Hikaru turned his head away, trying to hide his very obvious blush. Ben was more than slightly confused, he was just about to ask why Hikaru was acting so strange, when the man mumbled a, “He’s so handsome.”

 

Ben was still confused, until something in his brain clicked, “Oh man,” Ben smirked before he burst out laughing. 

“Wait, so you’re telling me,” Ben spoke in between his giggles, “That this piece of plastic,” Ben gestured at his glasses, “Has turned one of the Enterprise's best officers into a flustered mess, just because his thinks his husband looks striking in them?”

Hikaru turned back to Ben, to defend himself; but when he looked at Ben again, he felt his knees go weak and fell to the ground on his hands and knees. Ben went and helped the poor man up with a, “I’m going to take that as a yes.”

Hikaru took a deep breath and whispered a quiet, “Don’t you ever take those off.” 

Ben chuckled before replying, “With a reaction like that, I don’t think I have a reason to take them off.” He gave his quivering husband a kiss as he helped him sit down on the edge of the bed. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please go check out Sono's [tumblr](http://sonoberg.tumblr.com), they post a lot of really cute Star Trek art, mostly of the Sulu family. They're super sweet and their art is incredible!!


	30. Free Day: Future Fic

Hikaru was thrilled when 17 year old Demora called him from her PADD on Yorktown. Hikaru had been in his Captain’s quarters on the Excelsior, tending to his plants, when his PADD went off. He answered it and was excited to see Demora smiling back at him.

“Hey Dad!” She greeted.

“Hey Dem, how have you been? It’s been awhile since we last talked.”

“I’ve been really great and I’ve got some amazing news!” She beamed, smiling from ear to ear.

“Okay,” Hikaru half laughed, “What’s your news?”

She took a deep breath before answering, “I got into Starfleet!”

“Really?” Hikaru asked, his heart swelling in his chest.

“Yeah! They said I had one of the highest grade scorings out of everyone who submitted applications.” 

Hikaru, if he was there on Yorktown, would have swept Demora into a tight hug. Instead he settled for a, “That’s incredible Dem! I’m so proud of you.”

 

\----- _ 4 Years Later _ \-----

 

Hikaru and Ben couldn’t believe it when they saw Demora accept her Starfleet diploma and sit down with the rest of her graduating class. She, throughout her 4 years in the academy, maintained the second highest grade score, which Hikaru called bullshit on. Demora deserved to be at the very top of her class and not come second to a narcissistic Andorian-Vulcan. But nevertheless, Hikaru and Ben were extremely proud of their daughter’s achievements. 

They greeted her outside the auditorium they had been sitting in for the past 2 hours. They both hugged her at the same time mumbling little, “We love you’s” and, “We’re so proud of you.” When they separated, all three of them were in tears. “I can’t believe in a week, I’ll be exploring space.” Demora breathed. 

“Are you excited?” Hikaru asked.

Demora looked a little concerned when she answered, “I’m a little worried, I’ve been assigned as the chief helmsman for the Enterprise B and it’s making me a bit nervous.”

Hikaru smiled and wrapped his arm around Demora, “Don’t worry, you’ll do great!”

 

Hikaru and Ben watched from Starbase 1, Earth’s starbase, as the Enterprise B detached from the spacedock and launched into warp, sending the starship flying out into the vastness of space.

“I’m gonna miss her,” Hikaru whispered.

“I already miss her,” Ben replied softly.

They held hands as they stared at the space where a few seconds ago, their daughter sat on the bridge of the new Enterprise before she sent it into the next galaxy. Five years would pass until they got to see Demora again.


End file.
